Pool C -- 2015

[AO]

Take a shot at which league has the best SOS so far in 2015.  No peeking! 

The Centennial?  They went 8-2 but with only one-non-conference game they can only get so far above .500

[jknezek]

I'm going with the SAA. I've seen some of their SOS numbers...

[wally_wabash]

I'm going with the SAA. I've seen some of their SOS numbers...

When I had initially posted the question I check some math against the MIAC and the WIAC and the SAA is in fact a "better" conference using SOS as the metric.   But the "best" conference is the Empire 8.  As a league, their SOS is 0.598 (which is almost a made up number it's so ludicrous) and 7 of their 9 teams live in the top 30 of the SOS rankings through week 8.  Absurd. 

[art76]

There are still 16 undefeated teams listed in the SOS list:

35 Johns Hopkins    7-0    1.000    .5952 (51)    .5333    0.575
51 Illinois Wesleyan    7-0    1.000    .5476 (82)    .5709    0.555
75 UW-Oshkosh    6-0    1.000    .5152 (107)    .5907    0.540
88 Wesley    7-0    1.000    .5128 (111)    .5547    0.527
89 St. Norbert    7-0    1.000    .4878 (133)    .6014    0.526
101 Hardin-Simmons    5-0    1.000    .4783 (137)    .5984    0.518
106 Linfield    6-0    1.000    .4839 (136)    .5798    0.516
111 St. Thomas    7-0    1.000    .4651 (145)    .6100    0.513
119 Washington and Lee    6-0    1.000    .4706 (142)    .5778    0.506
143 Olivet    7-0    1.000    .4186 (188)    .6361    0.491
167 Thomas More    8-0    1.000    .4255 (184)    .5520    0.468
170 Wheaton (Ill.)    7-0    1.000    .3810 (200)    .6345    0.466
183 Mary Hardin-Baylor    6-0    1.000    .3667 (206)    .6196    0.451
187 Wabash    7-0    1.000    .4048 (192)    .5326    0.447
204 Mount Union    7-0    1.000    .3488 (212)    .5691    0.422
222 Western New England    7-0    1.000    .2857 (224)    .5270    0.366

What I find interesting is which teams are listed near the bottom of the list. Some of these teams will lose a game between now and the end of the season. Nothing really new here, except to note which teams are here this year at this time of the year.

[bulk19]

As a UWEC Blugold, whose 0-7 team stinks like a foot and is sitting at #45 on strength of schedule, and looking at a defeated season, I humbly appologize...
You see, UWEC has lost to ranked St. Thomas and Wheaton teams, and will close out with Whitewater, Platteville and Oshkosh. Thus, we will be moving up in the SOS schedule rankings, thus knocking other schools downward, and perhaps thereby ruining the seasons of some teams on the playoff bubble who are counting on SOS to help them get in... 

[wally_wabash]

As a UWEC Blugold, whose 0-7 team stinks like a foot and is sitting at #45 on strength of schedule, and looking at a defeated season, I humbly appologize...

Aw man...the Blugolds were collateral damage.  I could have easily used Wilmington or Stout or River Falls or Muskingum as an example.  Sorry about that. 

[bulk19]

I apologize again - sorry to ranked Concordia-Moorehead, for inadvertently overlooking and not mentioning their W over the Blugolds this season, too...

[wesleydad]

Nice job guys explaining how this all works and how it might go.  If Wesley were to lose to Salisbury and drop to pool C, could they be in trouble if Albright wins out.  I would think that Albright would be ahead of them based on common opponent result and Wesley may never get to the table.  Or would that change how the dominos fall and both Albright and Wesley would get in?

[wally_wabash]

Nice job guys explaining how this all works and how it might go.  If Wesley were to lose to Salisbury and drop to pool C, could they be in trouble if Albright wins out.  I would think that Albright would be ahead of them based on common opponent result and Wesley may never get to the table.  Or would that change how the dominos fall and both Albright and Wesley would get in?

Really good question.  The short answer is, I'm not sure.  The common opponent result in your scenario is bad for Wesley, but Wesley may be able to overcome that with a superior SOS and ranked wins against Rowan and North Central...IF those two teams can hang on to the back end of their regional rankings.  If one or both slip, it gets really easy to put Albright ahead of Wesley in the rankings. 

[wesleydad]

Nice job guys explaining how this all works and how it might go.  If Wesley were to lose to Salisbury and drop to pool C, could they be in trouble if Albright wins out.  I would think that Albright would be ahead of them based on common opponent result and Wesley may never get to the table.  Or would that change how the dominos fall and both Albright and Wesley would get in?

Really good question.  The short answer is, I'm not sure.  The common opponent result in your scenario is bad for Wesley, but Wesley may be able to overcome that with a superior SOS and ranked wins against Rowan and North Central...IF those two teams can hang on to the back end of their regional rankings.  If one or both slip, it gets really easy to put Albright ahead of Wesley in the rankings.

with todays result for Salisbury, Wesley can not lose the game if they want to get in.  the umhb loss may change things up a little although you guys had hardin in anyway.  I was thinking, when was the last time uww and umhb had to travel for the playoffs.  this could be a really interesting playoff bracket set up.  maybe uww goes to mount bracket since the west is very loaded.

[USee]

UWW was on the road in 2010 beating North Central in the quarters and @Wesley in the Semi's if I remember correctly.

[wesleydad]

UWW was on the road in 2010 beating North Central in the quarters and @Wesley in the Semi's if I remember correctly.

i believe that is correct.  still 5 years is a long time. 

[wally_wabash]

UWW was on the road in 2010 beating North Central in the quarters and @Wesley in the Semi's if I remember correctly.

i believe that is correct.  still 5 years is a long time.

I think it was putting Whitewater on the road in 2010 that forced a rule change protecting undefeated teams that also performed well in the previous year's tournament.  Pretty egregious error, really. 

[wally_wabash]

Winners from the spotlight games:

North Central @ Illinois Wesleyan
Albion @ Olivet
DePauw @ Denison
St. Thomas @ Concordia-Moorhead
Gustavus Adolphus @ Bethel ]
Mary Hardin-Baylor @ Hardin-Simmons
Gettysburg @ Moravian
Washington & Lee @ Emory & Henry
Washington U. @ Case Western Reserve
Texas Lutheran @ Trinity(TX)
Frostburg State @ Rowan
And what may well be the 2015 swan song for The dc1 West Coast Special™: Pacific @ Whitworth

Other games of note:
Cortland State @ Morrisville State
Christopher Newport @ Salisbury

[Mr. Ypsi]

UWW was on the road in 2010 beating North Central in the quarters and @Wesley in the Semi's if I remember correctly.

i believe that is correct.  still 5 years is a long time.

I think it was putting Whitewater on the road in 2010 that forced a rule change protecting undefeated teams that also performed well in the previous year's tournament.  Pretty egregious error, really.

Careful, wally!  Those who perpetually argue THIS year only should be wary of 'pretty egregious error'.  The results from 2010 ONLY clearly favored NCC as the home team.  I agreed that it was a miscarriage of justice, but it was perfectly proper for those who argue that ONLY this year's results should matter!

Methinks you are tripping over your own hypocrisy.

And if past results count for undefeated teams, why not in comparing 9-1 teams with comparable losses, etc.?